Rev. Gary Hall Of The National Cathedral Labels Homophobia 'Sin'

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On Top Magazine Staff

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October 08, 2013

The Rev. Gary Hall, dean of The
National Cathedral in the District of Columbia, on Sunday labeled
homophobia a sin.

“Homophobia is sin,” Hall declared
during a special Holy Eucharist in honor of LGBT youth. “Shaming
people for whom they love is a sin. Shaming people because their
gender identity doesn't fit neatly into your sense of what it should
be is a sin. Only when all our churches say that clearly and boldly
and courageously will our LGBT youth be free to grow up in a culture
that totally embraces them fully as they are.”

The service was part of a series of
events to commemorate the death of Matthew Shepard, the college
student thought to have been murdered because of his sexual
orientation.

Responding to The
Christian Post's question on whether he felt homosexuality is
a sin, Hall, the tenth dean of the Episcopal Church's cathedral,
responded that it is “not for me to say.”

“The Scriptures devote little space
or energy to sexual relationships, and we have read our own obsession
with sexual issues back onto the text,” Hall said. “When I look
to Jesus, I see someone who was compassionate, empathetic, and
inviting to all people regardless of their status. For me to say
that I believe homophobia to be a sin does not mean that I will stop
talking to people with a different understanding of sexuality than I
have.”